Wedding Bells

My grandfather got remarried, recently, at the church Deron and I married. Just a little church out in the country. We tried to get pictures out in front, but the fact that the girls hadn't had naps was beginning to show. They're just like their mama. They need their sleep.

It was nice to revisit. The little church brought back so many precious memories. I could see myself frantic because Deron had gone out to eat for breakfast and took for-e-ver to get to the church. I could see his face while I walked down the aisle. I could hear Bro. Chad's voice while he spoke and instructed us during the ceremony. I could feel Deron's hand hold onto mine as we turned to walk out to the church as husband and wife.

Here we are...almost nine years later, but it feels like it was yesterday. Except for the fact that we have four children!

Precious memories...

September 2010

September has been a very busy month.

We started school back in August, so this month, we really got in our groove with it. It's been wonderful. This year we're studying Astronomy, the Middle Ages, American History (in preparation for our field trips to Jamestown and Yorktown), and of course, literature, reading/phonics, math, and handwriting.

We've spent the past few days doing all our read aloud stuff out on the front porch because the weather is beautiful. The air has a nice chill. The leaves are turning. The breeze is blowing just right. The kids have enjoyed sitting around on the porch and listening. We put out fall flowers into all our front porch pots, and that seems to have transformed it into fall! It's so peaceful out there.

Halfway through September, we went to visit my sister, brother-in-law, and newest nephew, Baby Jackson. He's adorably cute and wonderful. Really, he's a very good baby. We had the best time.

I mentioned earlier that we were able to visit Jamestown and Yorktown. We toured both of the living history museums and learned more than we could have ever learned any other way. Seeing it up close...the recreations...letting the children ask questions and participate in activities...it was amazing!

There are moments I've wondered if my children are really listening and understanding what I'm trying to teach them. At Yorktown, Daniel answered questions about the Boston Tea Party, and I couldn't have been more excited! It felt like a little victory.

While we were in Virginia, Hannah fell head over heals for her Uncle Joe. At three years old, she wouldn't let him out of her sight... We went to a local county fair while we were visiting, and the guy running the ferris wheel was not very coordinated. They had to have been on it for 30 minutes! Then, they got to ride in the back of a monster truck, and Deron was surprised they didn't make you sign a waiver before getting on.


We started to ride the swings, but Hannah was too small. However, she did walk right up to the big ole dude running the swings and said, "I'm not scared. I'm a big girl. I can do it." Seriously. She did not do it. And then, when we took her to the kiddie dragon ride, she got in a yellow dragon and asked the guy, "Can I please ride in the purple dragon?" You should have seen his face, but he moved her to the purple one.

We had a blast. The best part about the fair was the food. Oh, they had all the typical fair food, but they also had local vendors. We got these amazing little fresh...not frozen or prefab in any way, shape, or form...crab cake sandwiches and sweet potato fries. Very good...very good. Another day, we went to Maggie Moo's Ice Cream shop, and I fell in love with cheesecake flavored ice cream and red velvet cake flavored ice cream.

We were able to babysit Jackson a few times for Jenn and Joe, and it made me miss having a little one around. Grace may be small, but she's not little! We'll get chance to be with Jackson again this weekend! Oh...and Jenn and Joe, too.

September has been great. And now that the weather feels like fall, I just can't ask for anything more!

I've had high hopes for staying consistent with our blog, so we'll see.

We did set him free...

We found this little fella scootin' across the front yard a few weeks ago. The children were thrilled, of course. Any excuse to play with another critter... They tried to "create a habitat" for him in our cooler! We set him free despite protests from the peanut gallery.

First Day of School

We started our 2010-2011 school year on Monday, and so far, things are going decently well. Ethan started 2nd grade, and Daniel started 1st grade. Entertaining the little princesses is a little tricky, but for the most part, it's been great!

Guess who's my class clown?

And the little darling girls...

Shark Week

She's goin' to the pot-tay!

Grace is potty training! Hooray! She's finally ready. In the past, I'd always start the kids when I was ready or when "so and so" started their kid. I'd tell myself that it ought to work for mine if it worked for their kid. Then, it was like I was trained...not my child. Very frustrating.

Now, I know better. Well...I knew with Hannah, too. It was far less painful and a whole lot faster with her. I pushed the boys before they were ready, making life miserable for them and for me. Live and learn, I suppose.

I feel like dancing in the kitchen every time Grace talks about heading toward the bathroom! We all clap and jump up and down for her. She loves it! Seriously.

Officially switched!

This will be our full time family blog. I've stopped using the other blog since they changed it or went to a new server or something. I don't know, but it was driving me crazy! Welcome to the new blog! Maybe I'll write more now...